Quantitative Biology > Neurons and Cognition

Title:
Evolutionary Approaches to Creativity

Abstract: Many species engage in acts that could be called creative. However, human
creativity is unique in that it has transformed our planet. Given that the
anatomy of the human brain is not so different from that of the great apes,
what enables us to be so creative? Recent collaborations at the frontier of
anthropology, archaeology, psychology, and cognitive science are culminating in
speculative but increasingly sophisticated efforts to answer to this question.
Examining the skeletons of our ancestors gives cues as to anatomical
constraints that hindered or made possible various kinds of creative
expression. Relics of the past have much to tell us about the thoughts,
beliefs, and creative abilities of the people who invented and used them. How
the spectacular creativity of humans came about is the first topic addressed in
this chapter. Studies at the intersection of creativity and evolution are not
limited to investigations into the biological evolution of a highly creative
species. Creative ideas themselves might be said to evolve through culture.
Human creativity is distinctive because of the adaptive and open-ended manner
in which change accumulates. Inventions build on previous ones in ways that
enhance their utility or aesthetic appeal, or make them applicable in different
situations. There is no a priori limit to how a creative idea might unfold. It
is this proclivity to take an idea and make it our own, or 'put our own spin on
it', that makes creative ideas evolve. The next section of this chapter
investigates in what sense creative ideas evolve through culture. Finally, we
address what forces supported the evolution of creativity. Does being creative
help us live longer, or attract mates? Perhaps creative projects can sometimes
interfere with survival and reproductive fitness; are there non-biological
factors that compel us to create? This is a third topic addressed in this
chapter.